Catalog Prices From A Past Time

[ArizonaBeagle]

I was cleaning some bookshelves and found this catalog from Ruvel from a past time.
You can guess the date from the information provided in the ad.



Ahhhh.......If we only knew what we would be collecting today.......

AZB

Information

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[Peter Laidler]

Is there anything from this or any other shooting/gun catalogue that has remained pretty much the same price or at least, risen at well below the rate of inflation. On the same subject, were there repro's and the now common out and out but cleverly worded fakes in those days that we're used to seeing now

[ArizonaBeagle]

Prices have risen due to supply and demand as much as anything. There was a time when .30 Browning MG belts were given away as tie downs when someone wanted them. Today, as ridiculous as it seems original, as issued 250 round Browning cloth belts fetch as much as $40.00 or more. (I recently got some for $12.00 ea. and was quite happy)

Ruvel was one of many real "Army/Navy" surplus stores and mail order companies that abounded for quite some time after the war and well up into the the late 70's. Most seem to have disappeared or changed their name to something more acceptable, i.e. Popular Surplus became Popular Outdoor Outfitters and then went away.

The items listed for sale that are military issue surplus are listed as such.

Sportsman's Guide still sells various military surplus items today and at the same time sells items that are listed as "military style" which are not military surplus but newly manufactured. Many others today will list them as reproductions or as imported (which means reproductions)

And yes, there are still those unscrupulous people out there that sell fakes of all types,
including military surplus.

AZB